The district today is composed of various barrios (these are the primary legal divisions of municipalities in Puerto Rico) such as Pueblo and Universidad. The historic town was founded in 1714 as El Roble, it was given municipality rights in 1823, and since 1903 it has been the home of the University of Puerto Rico’s main campus, earning the popular name of Ciudad Universitaria (similar to college town) today. The downtown and historic center of Río Piedras is officially known as the Pueblo barrio of the municipality of San Juan.
